All Chapters of Where the Flowers Bloom: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

When I got home, I spent the entire afternoon sitting quietly on the couch by myself.When Joshua Warren came home from work, the kitchen was still a complete mess.He took one look at it and his expression immediately darkened."Can you not even handle this little bit of housework anymore?"I was already used to his criticism and constant fault-finding, so my expression did not change. Then I caught the faint scent of flowers clinging to his suit jacket. "I noticed something today. There is a new flower shop downstairs from your office. The smell inside is exactly the same as the scent on your clothes."He did not even look up. His voice only grew more impatient. "What exactly are you trying to say?"I pressed my lips together. In the end, all I said was, "Nothing. I just think the flowers smell really nice. Tomorrow, I…"Before I could finish, he cut me off. "Since when are you interested in flowers?"The soup was a little bland tonight. Pay more attention tomorrow."With th

Chapter 2

However, my throat tightened and, when I spoke, my voice came out rough."He treats you really well."Whitney lowered her head and gently brushed her fingers over the petals in her hand."Yeah. He says the flowers I arrange have the most life in them. He says every bouquet looks like a painting."He also says these hands of mine should only ever touch flowers. Anything else would be a waste."She looked up at me, her eyes crinkling with a bright smile."How does he come up with so many sweet things to say? Sometimes, it all feels too good to be real."Her smile was so sweet, yet it felt like a blade stabbing straight through my heart, especially the way her eyes seemed to glow as she talked about him.I knew that glow all too well.I used to have it too.Back when Joshua and I had just fallen in love and gotten married, he could not get enough of pampering me. He treated me like I was something precious, as if he wanted to hold me in the palm of his hand.However, it did not

Chapter 3

"Then I want to get a job."He stopped in his tracks and looked at me like I was a child throwing a tantrum."You cannot even keep up with the things that need to be done at home. What could you possibly do out there? And what are you going to put on your résumé? Seven years as a stay-at-home wife? What company is going to hire you?"All right, that’s enough. I have been really busy with work lately and I am exhausted."As he spoke, he rested his head against my shoulder. The scent of flowers filled my nose again.Suddenly, my stomach churned.I shoved him away and rushed into the bathroom, where I leaned over the toilet and dry-heaved for several minutes.When I came back out, Joshua's face was grim."What is wrong with you? Are you pregnant?"Lucia, have I ever told you that I am at a crucial stage in my career right now? This is not a good time to have a child. Go to the hospital tomorrow and schedule the procedure."I was not pregnant.However, his coldness still hit me

Chapter 4

"Looking at storefronts? You are opening another location already?"She nodded, her excitement impossible to hide."Yep. My boyfriend is a senior executive at a major company, so I cannot fall too far behind, right?"You know, he even took a whole day off just to go look at storefronts with me."My hand tightened into a fist at my side."Did you know your boyfriend already has a family?"He did not take the day off to look at storefronts with you. He took the day off to take his wife home to visit his in-laws."The moment I said that, all the color drained from Whitney's face.My suspicion had been confirmed."So you actually knew all along that your boyfriend was married.""No. I did not know." She panicked and tried to force me out of the shop, but I snatched her phone away.Whitney had recently started doing online flower-arranging classes, and she went live at exactly four every afternoon.The timing was perfect.I turned the phone's camera toward her face and spoke sh

Chapter 5

Yes. For my mom's sake, I had no choice.I told myself that as I walked over and picked up the phone Joshua had smashed onto the floor.I opened the livestream again.More than eight hundred people had watched the livestream. The comment section was already exploding. Some viewers had tagged local lifestyle bloggers, while others had taken screenshots and posted them on social media.I held the phone in front of me and recorded a short video, just as Joshua had ordered."What happened earlier was just a game of Truth or Dare I was playing with a friend. I lost, so I made up a bunch of lies. Ms. Baker is innocent and I want to sincerely apologize to her."I will also provide appropriate financial compensation for the emotional distress and damage to her reputation that I caused."The moment I finished speaking, I stopped the recording and posted it.Joshua watched every move I made, clearly afraid I might pull another stunt before he could stop me.As soon as he confirmed that

Chapter 6

Joshua did not notice anything unusual about me. He still thought I was simply throwing a little tantrum.After taking a shower, he changed into a fresh set of clothes. Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he told me, "Whitney was really shaken up by what happened today. I am going to stay with her for a few days."Do not worry. No matter what happens between Whitney and me, you will always be Mrs. Warren."With that, he walked out without even looking back.Mrs. Warren?I let out an icy laugh.From that day on, Joshua started openly spending nights away from home.At first, it was once a week.Then it became every other day.Soon, he was gone almost every night.The scent of flowers on his clothes changed little by little too. Sometimes it was white roses, sometimes lilies. A few times, it was a flower I could not even name.After taking a few days off, Whitney resumed her livestreams. The whole scandal had actually gained her a wave of new followers.I

Chapter 7

Hearing such shameless words, I laughed calmly to myself.However, I did not let it show. Instead, I turned around and poured the tomatoes into the frying pan. The hot oil immediately sputtered and popped.He stood behind me for a while longer before finally dragging his suitcase out.When I heard the door close, I set down my spatula, opened Messenger, and sent Daniel a message.[He moved out. He took his fall and winter clothes with him.]Daniel replied almost instantly.[Living separately can also be used as evidence.]That night, for the first time, I slept right in the middle of the master bed.I did not curl up on one side.The bed was huge and most of the comforter was untouched. I stretched out flat with my arms and legs spread wide. The glow from the streetlights outside cast a hazy yellow light across the ceiling.Somehow, I slept better than I had in a long time....In early November, Joshua was promoted. The company posted an official announcement on its webs

Chapter 8

"You could tell him you got divorced and then remarried."The moment I said that, his expression darkened.For some reason, though, he did not lose his temper. Instead, he simply repeated the same words he had said to me before."I already told you. You will always be Mrs. Warren, Lucia. No other woman could ever take your place."...Whitney's rise to fame happened even faster than I had expected.Starting in mid-November, her followers on the short-video platform jumped from twenty thousand to 180,000.The content was still mostly the same: flower arranging, floral design tutorials and daily life at the shop.However, there were now a lot more videos filmed from her "boyfriend's perspective."Someone posted a video of her getting out of a black luxury van.I knew the license plate by heart.Someone in the comments asked if the man was her husband. She smiled and replied, "He's my boyfriend," followed by a shy emoji.That video got more than 100,000 likes.Her boyfriend n

Chapter 9

When the host stepped onto the stage, Joshua straightened his tie and walked out from the crowd.The spotlight followed him, and the room erupted in applause.He took the microphone and swept his gaze across the ballroom.When his eyes landed on me, they paused for a split second before quickly moving on."Thank you all for coming tonight..."That was when I suddenly stood up from the guest section. It was not a dramatic movement, but the legs of my chair scraped lightly against the marble floor. A few people nearby turned to look at me.I did not stop.I walked down the aisle, my heels clicking sharply against the floor.Joshua saw me too. A flicker of shock crossed his face.The moment I reached him, he lowered his voice."What are you doing? Get off the stage."I ignored him. Instead, I pulled my phone from my bag.Once I connected it to the ballroom's sound system through Bluetooth, I raised the microphone and spoke loudly."Hello, everyone. There are probably still so

Chapter 10

There were also more than a dozen missed calls from unfamiliar numbers, probably reporters or Whitney.The last message was from Joshua.[Lucia, where are you? We need to talk.]I stared at it for two seconds, then turned off the screen.I went back to the apartment I had rented only a couple of days ago. It was a small two-bedroom place that Daniel had rented under his own name for me.The living room was tiny, but the heating worked well.After taking a shower, I wrapped myself in a blanket and curled up on the couch. The local news was playing on TV, and tonight's celebration was the main story.On the screen, Joshua stood onstage, his face blurred.A headline appeared at the bottom:[Vice President Accused by Wife of Marital Infidelity and Fraud in Public Scandal. Company Has Yet to Respond.]I leaned back against the couch. The flickering light from the TV danced across the opposite wall.My phone lit up again.Another message from Joshua.[I know I was wrong. Please

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